Chocolate Fixes Everything
by splitseconddecision
Summary: Her husband is cheating on her. Her company is facing major opposition from Wing Corp. She's running low on chocolate. What's a bunny to do?...AU
1. Chapter One

Chocolate Fixes Everything

Chapter One

~*~

**Disclaimer:** As should be painfully obvious, I do not own the characters or situations of Gundam Wing of Sailormoon. I do, however, own this plot and text, and ask you not to plagiarize it or use it without permission.

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love-polygons, anti-Mamoru (though there will be very little bashing)

**Author's Note:** Well, it has certainly been a while since I last sat down to write, and during that time, I have been trying to increase my writing skills, hopefully successfully. 

Many of those reading this fic will probably just skip down to the story. I ask you to please restrain yourself from doing so. What I have to say is important.

Though I am writing for your enjoyment, I am also writing for my own. Therefore, please do not ask me to pair up so-and-so with so-and-so. It will simply serve to annoy me and will not sway me whatsoever.

I do not require you to review this story, even though it is encouraging to know that people are reading this. I will not be a coward and balk at the slightest criticism. In fact, I could really use your judgment of my writing skills to help me fix whatever needs to be fixed. Flames, though not encouraged or sincerely appreciated, are tolerable.

In exchange, I will do my best to make this story interesting, enjoyable, and actually finish it.

That said, enjoy.

~*~*~*~

            Perfectly manicured nails tapped a rhythm on the cherry wood desk. The owner of the nails' sapphire eyes that normally held a happy sparkle were currently sparkling with barely concealed fury as the stared at the newsprint before them.

            Tsukino-Chiba Usagi calmly folded the newspaper, taking a deep breath and setting it on the desk. She folded her hands in front of her and focused her attention on her secretary, Aino Minako.

            "How," she began calmly, making Minako flinch, "did this happen?" Minako made a few attempts at explaining, but was only able to stutter, possibly fearing the infamous wrath of the petite blonde-haired woman who sat at the desk. Usagi sighed, rubbing her temples. She felt a headache coming. "Never mind. I don't want to know. Send in Rei, we need to do some damage control." Minako nodded emphatically, seizing the chance to remove herself from her boss' presence.

            Usagi, still massaging her temples, reclined in her desk chair and reached for a drawer. She pulled it open, smiling as her secret stash of chocolate came into view. She removed a chocolate bar from its place and closed the drawer, before peeling the wrapper and foil away and taking a bite. She closed her eyes and let her head rest against the crisp-smelling leather of the chair. She reveled in the warm, sweet taste of the chocolate, letting her troubles melt away as the candy melted in her mouth.

The sensation was ruined— and the troubles returned— when a sharp voice brought Usagi back to reality.

"That stuff will make you fat, you know," Hino Rei said, hands on her hips. Usagi pouted, letting her businesslike demeanor disappear in the presence of her old friend.

"Hidoi, Rei-chan!" she said, sitting up straight in her chair again, uncrossing her legs that she hadn't realized had been crossed. Rei rolled her eyes and took a seat in the visitor's chair on the opposite side of the desk.

"Honestly, you are such a child. Didn't I get rid of your stash?"

"You just got rid of the one hidden in the safe behind that painting by… uh…Monte?"

"That would be 'Monet'. Anyway, what's going on? Minako came rushing into my office babbling about you being on a warpath. You know that isn't good for your image," Rei asked conversationally, flipping her long black hair over her shoulder. Usagi's eyes darkened as she pushed the newspaper on the desk towards her friend. Rei picked it up, took one look at the headline, and slammed the paper back on the desk, amethyst eyes snapping with fury. "This is an outrage! We should sue!"

"On what grounds?" Usagi replied, not fazed by Rei's sudden flare of temper. "You know as well as I do that they are perfectly entitled to—"

"You don't understand! Yui Hiiro… he's one of my ex-boyfriend's best friends!" Usagi raised her eyebrows, eyes widening slightly.

"You mean… Chang Wufei?"

"The egotistical, chauvinistic asshole himself," Rei confirmed, attempting to calm herself slightly by taking a few deep breaths.

"Hey, none of that language in here! Do remember that I employ you," Usagi said, ignoring Rei's biting mutter of 'who ever would have even _thought_?' "What we need to do is… I don't know…retaliate? Challenge him?"

"No good. Yui might have poor taste in friends"— here Rei gave a snort and glared at nothing in particular— "but he's very skillful and inventive. If he played his cards right, he could put us out of business in no time flat. I'll think of something to reply with and boost our sales, and then I'll call a press conference. Meanwhile, you sit here and start turning those wheels in that head of yours." 

Rei rose and began to walk to the door, but Usagi called for her to stop. The next thing Rei knew, something was flying toward her face. She caught it, arms raised, and stared at it.

"Chocolate?" she asked incredulously, raising an eyebrow at Usagi's grinning face.

"Fixes everything."

~*~

            Yui Hiiro stared emotionlessly down at the front page of the newspaper, and then gave his publicity manager, an American named Duo Maxwell, a long stare.

            "You actually got them to print this on the front page?" Hiiro asked, a barely discernable note of skepticism in his voice. Duo smirked.

            "I flirted with the editor a bit. Like cake," he said, crossing his ankles and lounging in the plush visitor's chair, he was currently sitting in. Chang Wufei, who was gazing out the window behind Hiiro's desk, snorted.

            "Typical Maxwell," he murmured, turning back to the room and leaning against a wall. Duo immaturely stuck out his tongue at the Chinese man, jokingly making a rude gesture involving a certain finger.

            "I haven't gotten a chance to read the entire thing yet," said Quatre Winner quietly from the chair next to Duo. "What does it say?"

            "Basically that Wing Corp. is setting up business in direct opposition to Luna Inc., owned by the illustrious Mrs. Tsukino-Chiba Usagi," Duo replied, unable to keep a goofy grin off of his face. "It also implies that all of their products are inferior to ours. I had to take the writer out on a date for her to take that angle on it."

            "And I'm sure that was a _great_ ignominy for you, Maxwell," Wufei commented.

            "Who asked you?" Duo retorted menacingly, though his chuckling ruined the effect.

            "Anyway, they're bound to retaliate," Wufei continued, glancing out the window to the building across. The neon sign on the building read "Luna Inc." Wufei smirked.

            "How do you know that?" Duo asked, a small frown inching onto his expression.

            "I happen to know a certain high-end employee in Luna Inc. Very well, in fact, and if anyone knows the first thing about Hino Rei, it's that she always retaliates."

            "Rei-san?" Quatre said, his normally soft features becoming stern. "Wufei, I hope you didn't get this idea just for revenge."

            "Doesn't matter. What's done is done, and we will most likely gain from it. For the time being, take five. We'll wait to see what Luna Inc. comes up with, and then we will respond accordingly. Adjourned," Hiiro said. Quatre, Duo, and Wufei nodded simultaneously and slowly made their way out of the room, leaving behind two occupants. Hiiro stood up and turned to the window, staring at the opponents' lair for a few moments before acknowledging the person who had been silent for the entire meeting.

            "What do you think, Trowa?" he asked. Trowa Barton, the fifth member of Wing Corp.'s executive team, was silent for a moment, and then, slowly, a small smile spread across his features.

            "I think," he said, walking over to the window to gaze at the object of Hiiro's stare, "that we are going to have one interesting year." Without bothering to explain further, he nodded to Hiiro before departing from the room, leaving the CEO to stare at the building across the street, pondering the other's words.

~*~

            Scarf wrapped cozily around her neck, Usagi walked out of the office building, bidding goodbye to the security guard, a young man named Urawa Ryo, and the head of her finance department, Mizuno Ami, who was talking with him. Her face was set in a contemplative frown, and she was currently munching on her fifth chocolate bar of the day— which, in spite of her adamant denials, did not fix much in this situation. She paused and glared at the building across the street. It was identical to her building in every way, apart from the logo at the top of the building that proclaimed it to be Wing Corp. headquarters. She mentally cursed the sign, which she had been forced to stare at all day as it was directly across her office window.

            The frown was wiped off her face when a black BMW convertible drove around the corner and stopped in front of her. "Mamo-chan!" she squealed, vaulting over the door with the grace of a cat. The man at the wheel smiled charmingly and gave Usagi a warm kiss.

            "Konbanwa, Usako! How was work?" Chiba Mamoru asked his wife, lowering the sunglasses perched on his nose to reveal steel-blue eyes. Usagi pouted and took another bite of chocolate as Mamoru drove off.

            "It was absolutely horrible," she groaned, securing her seatbelt. Mamoru nodded in sympathy.

            "I saw the headline. And to set up shop directly across from you? That's harsh," he said. Usagi beamed at him, a grateful look in her eyes.

            "I knew you'd understand, Mamo-chan," she cooed, turning the radio on low. Christmas tunes rang out from the speakers. Usagi smiled, heartened by the reminder that her favorite holiday was not far away. Mamoru gave the radio a skeptic look.

            "It's only November, and they're already starting that?"

            "Don't be such a stick in the mud, Mamo-chan!" Usagi said, poking her tongue out at him.

            "Put that away unless you plan on using it," Mamoru chuckled. Usagi sulked, but did so. She then started massaging her temples (a habit she had been developing a lot lately) and leaned back against the beige leather seats. She glanced at Mamoru, who was staring levelly at the road, and smiled.

            They soon approached theur house, a relatively large house in the suburbs of Juuban. Usagi smiled, glad to be home.

            She and Mamoru had gone house-hunting as soon as their honeymoon ended two years ago. After six months of finding nothing that satisfied their needs, they had begun to get desperate. Luckily, Rei's neighbors, an elderly couple, had moved out of the area, vacating a house that fit Usagi's specifications and Mamoru's taste.

            As an added bonus, Rei was just next door, so if Usagi ever wanted to talk, she needn't run up the phone bill or drive halfway across Tokyo. 

            Mamoru pulled into the driveway, and Usagi let herself in the house while he covered the car with a tarp to keep the elements away. She took a deep breath as she walked through the door, inhaling the pine scent with pleasure. She had demanded Mamoru bring the Christmas decorations down, and had discovered among the boxes of cherished ornaments a long-forgotten pine garland that went over the door.

            Sighing blissfully, she entered the kitchen and industriously began making dinner, hoping very much that she would not burn it this time. She had gotten some cooking pointers from her friend Makoto before the chef moved to France, but she was far from an expert, and still had a teenage tendency to drift into a daydream and forget about everything else.

            The phone rang. Usagi stared at it, for a moment wondering what it was and why it was making that obnoxious noise. Then she blinked, mentally berating herself for falling into a reverie again. She picked the phone up.

            "Moshi-moshi, Tsukino-Chiba residence!" she chirped happily, stirring the spaghetti sauce she was making to go with the angel hair pasta she was serving for dinner.

            "Hello? Um, can I speak to Chiba Mamoru-san, please? It's regarding the new program he wrote." It was a woman's voice, average in pitch. Usagi frowned. She knew all of Mamoru's coworkers, didn't she?

            "May I ask who's calling?"

            "This is Sakamoto Jun. It's rather urgent."

            "All— all right, just a second," Usagi said, confused and slightly suspiscious. She shook the suspiscion off, rolling her eyes at the shrewd business woman side of her personality that developed over the years. "Mamo-chan, there's a Sakamoto Jun-san calling, regarding a program you wrote for work."

            "I've got the cordless!" he called from the living room. Usagi nodded and set the phone back down on the cradle, before walking to the kitchen island and sitting down on a barstool. A few moments passed, and then Mamoru came into the kitchen, cordless phone in hand. He had a regretful look on his face. Usagi rose, worried.

            "Mamo-chan? Daijoubu ka?"

            "Hai, daijoubu. They need me at the office to help set up the new system to accommodate my program. It could take anywhere from an hour to all night," he said, looking pained. Usagi nodded slowly, dejected. Mamoru gave a small smile, though it was more like a grimace. "Hey, cheer up, I'll be home by tomorrow evening, at most. Save some of that spaghetti for me?" Usagi nodded, holding back tears. Mamoru grinned and left the room. Usagi heard the front door slam, and the car engine start up a few moments later.

            Usagi let the tears falls. This was the third time this week that Mamoru had been called in to work overtime, usually into the next day. He had also forgotten a certain important date: the next day was their second anniversary.

            Usagi let the spaghetti sauce burn, that night.

~*~*~*~

Author's Note: I'm starting to rather like this fic. ^_^ Thanks to Usa-neechan for reading parts through for me. Until next time, all.

~SA2-chan


	2. Chapter Two

Chocolate Fixes Everything

Chapter Two

**Disclaimer:** insert standard disclaimer here

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing)

**Author's Note: **I'm sorry this is so late. I haven't had the time to write lately. Oh yes, there's a cliffhanger at the end of this. Sorry.

* * *

Usagi woke up with a cramp in her neck. She blinked, wondering why she was sprawled over the sofa instead of snuggled up next to Mamoru in their king-sized bed. After a few moments, her memory returned to her and she rose, sighing— which she seemed to be doing a lot lately.

After crying for a few moments last night, she had raided the kitchen for chocolate and watched a depressing movie, which she fell asleep towards the end of.

She looked through the living room window and out onto the driveway. No black BMW accompanied her silver Jeep Rubicon, which meant that either Mamoru hadn't come home yet, or he was already back at work for the day. Speaking of…

Usagi craned her neck to see the kitchen clock, which read 8:29 AM.

"I'm gonna be LAAATE!"

Old habits die hard.

* * *

Rei paced the lobby of Luna Inc., a rolled-up newspaper clutched tightly in her hand. The other employees, mostly grunts, were avoiding her like the plague. It was a well-known fact that the CEO's personal assistant and best friend had an even more inflammatory temper than the CEO herself.

"Ohayo gozaimasu, Rei-san," Mizuno Ami said cheerily, ignoring the glare she received from the raven-haired girl.

"She's late," Rei grumbled, finally giving up on trying to intimidate the Financial Department head. Ami blinked and turned her head to the revolving glass entryway.

"I know it shouldn't surprise me, but it does," Ami said, before continuing her business as usual. Rei gave an exasperated sigh and began tapping the newspaper against her leg, glancing at her watch for the fifth time in the past seven minutes. It was around 9:00 AM when Usagi finally walked through the doors, maintaining the illusion of a calm, confident professional.

Rei knew better than to trust outward appearances. Usagi was running a hand through her bangs, and her lips were quivering slightly. Both, Rei had learned after six years of friendship with Usagi, were sure signs of nervousness. It probably didn't help that Rei was glaring at her, but the dark-haired girl was irritated that Usagi had regained the habit of tardiness from her teen years.

I thought I had rid her of that habit in senior year, Rei thought unhappily.

"Gomen, Rei-chan," Usagi said softly, trying not to show the distress she was feeling at the possible reprimand she would receive from her best friend. Fortunately for her, Rei took a deep breath, mentally counted to ten, and let the past hour (during which time she had been waiting) fly away.

"It's all right, just don't do it again," Rei assured the blonde, "especially not when we're in the middle of a crisis. Speaking of which, we have a development." At this point, Rei gave Usagi a significant look. The two nodded at each other simultaneously, and made their way up the levels to Usagi's office.

Once in the safe, soundproof area, Rei unrolled the newspaper and slammed it on the desk. The marquee proudly proclaimed "Wing Corp. Creates New Product; Luna Inc. Left in the Dust."

Rei had been extremely wise to wait until they reached the safe, soundproof area, because Usagi's scream of outrage reached three floors below as it was.

* * *

It also reached across the street, into the quiet office of Wing Corp. CEO Yui Hiiro. Duo smiled beatifically, violet-blue eyes dancing with glee.

"Music to my ears," he said, meandering over to the window of Hiiro's office to gaze at the window on the opposite side of the road, which he assumed belonged to Tsukino-Chiba Usagi. "We'll have them running away with their tails between their legs in no time."

"…Hnnn..." Duo rolled his eyes at Hiiro's grunt. He was one of the few people who understood Hiiro's limited vocabulary. This particular grunt meant "I'm sleepy," according to "The Handy Heero Dictionary on Tape" (by Shinigami no Kamikaze).

"Well, then, you shouldn't have stayed up all night making that new prototype," Duo said tartly, surveying the street below.

"Hn. Baka." Duo shot Hiiro a criticizing look.

"Now that's just cruel. I'm only looking out for your well-being, there's no need to call names."

"Omae o korosu," Hiiro growled, shooting Duo a death glare and rising from his seat.

"You don't mean that, do you Hii-man?" Duo gulped, glancing around for an escape route as he backed away from his boss.

"Prepare to die."

"QUATRE! HELP!"

* * *

Usagi was stumped. She sat, arms crossed and chin on her arms, at her cherry wood desk, wondering what to do about the situation at hand. Invent a product, invent a product, her mind chanted, as if the mantra would help her think of something to get her out of this mess.

It didn't. Her train of thought kept make its way back to the track that stopped by the audacious headline and the evil (for she was convinced that he was, in fact, the most evil being on the planet) Yui Hiiro.

There was a knock on the door. Usagi called out a welcome, thankful for the distraction. Aino Minako (who in spite of the fact that Usagi had yelled at her the day before, was one of Usagi's old friends) peeked around the door.

"Hey, Usagi-chan, I brought you something," Minako said, entering the room. She held a small tray in her hands, a steaming mug of hot chocolate perched on top of it. Usagi smiled gratefully.

"Minako-chan, you are an angel!" she said, accepting the hot chocolate with exuberant thanks.

"You're welcome," Minako laughed, sitting down in one of the visitors' chairs. "So, how goes the brainstorming?" Usagi shook her head dejectedly, sipping some hot chocolate. She didn't notice the whipped cream mustache left behind, nor would she have cared much about it if she did.

"Not so hot. You know, Minako-chan, maybe I should quit the communications business and look into making chocolate, as that seems to be the only thing I like anymore."

"I wouldn't advise it. You were always bad at cooking," Minako said with a teasing smile. Usagi smiled for a moment along with her, but then suddenly frowned.

"A mini-computer, damn it!" she cried, banging her head on the table and jogging the mug of hot chocolate. "We were just going through the plans to make one of our own, too!"

"You know, Usagi, stressing will get you nowhere. It'll just make things harder on yourself," Minako said worriedly. Usagi's frown deepened as she removed her head from the (now dented, she was sure) table.

"I don't have time for that, Minako! If we don't get an edge over Wing Corp., Luna Inc. will go down the drain! I'll lose everything."

"You have Mamoru-san," Minako said, attempting to cheer Usagi up. The blonde girl didn't respond, and Minako didn't notice the flash of pain that trespassed on Usagi's features. "Look, Usagi-chan, go home and relax. Watch a movie, go shopping… Do something to take your mind off of business, because it's obvious that you can't think under this kind of pressure."

"But—"

"Go. I'll make your excuses to Rei-chan." Usagi giggled.

"I don't envy you, Minako," she said, remembering the look on Rei's face that morning. Minako gave a pained look.

"The things I do for friendship… Go now, before I change my mind." Usagi laughed and rushed out of the room.

* * *

It was raining when Usagi emerged stelthily from the building, and Usagi wished she'd had the sense to actually bring the roof of her Jeep with her instead of opting for the free, shelterless adaptation. Oh well, it was too late now. She hopped into her car, shot a glare at Wing Corp., and sped off, happy for the lack of traffic that came standard with a rainy day at ten in the morning. She was home within fifteen minutes, smiling sleepily at the quaint little house that she shared with Mamoru. She parked her car and unlocked the front door, inhaling the pine scent once more. She stretched luxuriously and closed the door behind her, shutting off the sound of the rain.

As the rain faded out, she heard a new noise. _Mamoru can't be home yet, can he? _Usagi made her way to the source of the noise— her bedroom. Was it a burglar? She pushed the door open a fraction and froze.

* * *

I think it's quite obvious what's going on, but I'm leaving you there anyway. ;-P

My beloved reviewers:

Anya No Gin Hoshi: I guess I probably should include a glossary of terms, ne? Thank you for the advice.

Lady in Red1: I'm glad you like it so much! I need some chocolate about now… I can't even think straight enough to type…

Usa-neechan: Learn from me? Oo We'd probably have a whole lot worse fics than we already do! I did try to keep the characters in character, though…

¤°°º°º°°¤çé ßúé Éyé§¤°°º°º°°¤: Mou, please don't hurt me! Since when is being hooked a bad thing… ah. Yes, when an author doesn't update in ages. Bad Riru, bad!

Heeros Bunny: I'm so sorry! TT I don't think this constitutes as soon. --

Moon Mage Goddess: Sandry? As in "The Circle Opens"? I'm a major Tamora Pierce fan. I find it hard to believe that there are no flaws. I'll probably make millions of them before this is done.

Deidre Marie: Ah yes, this is the age where the experienced writers fall from power to the newbies who think they know fanfiction… To think I used to be one of them… TT Thank you for the compliments to my writing style… though I'm not quite sure I have any. (Style, that is. )

angelwings6117:glomp: Wow! Someone who reads my stories! XD Yes, I guess I do have Usagi drumming her fingers a lot… I think it's because it's a habit of mine… you know, drumming the fingers…

Until next time!


	3. Chapter Three

**Chocolate Fixes Everything**

_Chapter Three_

.:.

**Disclaimer:** Do you honestly believe that if I owned SM or GW, I would be writing fanfics right now? No sir. XP "Hit 'Em Up Style" belongs to Blu Cantrell.

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing)

**Author's Note: **Last time I posted, the QuickEdit on FF.N deleted my page breaks and most of my smileys… Sorry about that… So now I've changed my page breaks! Oh, and, Moon Mage Goddess? Thanks for the idea. ::evil grin::

.:.:.:.

Furuhata Motoki watched with a worried expression on his face as his old patron finished another ice cream sundae. Tsukino-Chiba Usagi had trudged into the arcade this afternoon with bloodshot, tear-filled eyes and shakily ordered an ice cream. Motoki had been shocked; Usagi, though she had been a frequent customer in her teenage days, had been into Crown Arcade very rarely since she married Motoki's old college friend, Mamoru.

"Another one, please, Motoki-kun," Usagi ordered quitely, staring at the counter with a broken expression on her face. Motoki ignored the request, instead walking over to her and lifting up her chin so he could look her in the eye.

"I think you've had enough, Usagi-chan."

"It's not like it's alcohol or anything, Motoki-kun," she replied, frowning.

"With you, alcohol and sugar take the same effect. Listen, Usagi-chan, I've known you since… well… forever, and you're like a little sister to me. Will you tell me what's wrong?"

Usagi looked down, and there was silence between them.

"Usagi-chan?" Motoki inquired hesitantly after she didn't speak.

"Did you know Mamoru was cheating on me, Motoki-kun?"

Motoki took a step back, gaping.

"I'm going to call Rei-san, Usagi-chan. Is that all right?" Usagi gave a silent assent, and Motoki made his way to the phone.

.:.

The car ride back to Luna Inc. was ominously quiet. Rei glanced at Usagi out of the corner of her eye, worried; it wasn't like Usagi to sit still and silent for even one minute, let alone the entire half an hour it took to drive from the arcade to Luna Inc. Headquarters. The blonde woman was staring out the window blankly, a far cry from her usual all-telling expression.

Usagi spoke suddenly, as they pulled into the multi-level parking complex slightly down the street from the office building.

"I have an idea, Rei-chan. I want R and D working on it right away." Rei winced at the tone— it wasn't happy, it wasn't angry, it was just… blank.

"All right, Usagi-chan. I'll have them on it, ASAP. Usagi, are you going to be okay?" A slow smile appeared on Usagi's face, but her eyes didn't reflect the action.

"I don't think I'll ever be okay again."

.:.

Usagi munched on the chocolate without tasting it. It was ten o'clock in the evening, but she and the Research and Development team were working overtime. They had already created a prototype of Usagi's idea, and the product was already making its way through the patent office.

She knew she should have been proud, but the emotion was shunted to the side in favor of a void. After that morning… Usagi didn't know how to feel, and she didn't particularly want to know. They had been so happy…

Usagi sat up, ramrod straight, berating herself. _Don't be stupid, Usagi. You should have seen this coming._ In fact, now that she looked back, she realized that she should have seen this coming for a long time. Her naivity and stubborn unwillingness to see the facts had hidden the truth from her; her childishness had done her in, in the end.

Reaching out to take her phone off of her desk, Usagi contemplated for a moment before pressing speed dial one.

She needed to speak with her lawyer.

.:.

Osaka Naru glared blearily at the object that was making an offending noise and waking her from her blissful slumber. It was a cell phone. Blinking, she glanced at her watch.

Who on earth would be calling at… 10:34 PM?! Naru grouchily stalked over to the phone and answered it.

"Osaka Naru. This had better be _good_," she snapped.

"Naru, it's Usagi," the voice on the other end of the phone said. Naru sighed. Tsukino Usagi might have been a friend and frequent client, but in spite of popular belief to the contrary, lawyers were human too, and needed rest as much as the next person.

"What do you want, Usagi-san? Isn't it a bit late in the day for someone to be suing you?"

"No one's suing me, Naru. Could you draw up some divorce papers for me?"

.:.

Usagi didn't bother going home that night. It only took a few moments to make the chaise lounge in her office into a bed (albeit a rather uncomfortable one). She decided she'd go apartment shopping the next day; preferably one far away from the suburbs where her and Mamoru's house was.

The radio played softly as Usagi curled up on the makeshift bed, and Usagi sighed as a new song came on.

_While he was schemin'  
I was beamin' in the Beemer, just beamin'  
Can't believe that I caught my man cheatin'  
So I found another way to make him pay for it all_

Usagi blinked.

_So I went  
To Neiman-Marcus on a shopping spree  
And on the way I grabbed Sole and Mia  
And as the cash box rang I thought everything away_

A slow smirk appeared on her face.

_There goes the dreams we used to say   
There goes the time we spent away  
There goes the love I had but you cheated on me  
And that's for that now  
There goes the house we made a home  
There goes you'll never leave me alone  
For all the lies you told  
This is what you're owed_

The smirk widened and became devious as she listened to the lyrics that were so true to the situation. Oh no, Usagi wasn't going to ask for a divorce quite yet.

.:.

Rei woke her up at seven in the morning. Usagi blinked blearily and then smiled.

"Ohayo, Rei-chan!" she said perkily. Rei gave her a suspiscious look.

"You're too happy. What's wrong?"

Getting the feeling that Rei, along with Mizuno Ami, would disapprove of her plans, Usagi said evasively, "Oh, I'm just glad I finally had a decent idea. Although, I'm a bit disappointed with the way it came out… I wasn't expecting it to be so… cartoon-y."

"Well, that's what you get for modelling it after your childhood pet. I don't know why you're so obsessed with that cat!"

"Mou, Rei-chan, don't be so mean! Luna was the best pet I ever had!"

"Try the _only_ pet."

"Well, Mako-chan was… like a pet… sometimes…"

There was silence for a moment, and then both girls burst out giggling.

"Usagi-chan, you're horrible!" After a few moments, when the girls had collected themselves, Rei rose to leave, mumbling something about making sure the patent got through.

"Ne, Rei-chan, could you send Minako-chan in on your way out?" Usagi asked innocently. Rei gave Usagi another suspiscious look, but acquiecsed.

Minako bounced in moments later, looking altogether to perky for… (Usagi looked at the digital clock on her desk) seven twenty-three in the morning.

"You wanted me, oh captain, my captain?" Minako asked. Usagi's eyes sparkled with mischief.

"Shopping." Minako smirked.

"Say no more, Cap'n, say no more."

.:.

The two blonde women roamed the streets of the shopping-district of Tokyo like predators in their natural habitat.

"Where to, _mon capitaine_?" Minako chirped. Her smile couldn't be larger if the Japanese government had just announced that Christmas would be celebrated twice a year; Minako was in her element. Usagi gave Minako a strange look.

"What's with the captain references, Mina-chan?"

"Felt like it, oh fearless leader. Well?"

"Apartment shopping first, then furniture, new clothes… anything and everything, really." Minako paused, causing Usagi to slow down and watch her curiously.

"Usagi, does Mamoru know about this?" Minako asked, frowning slightly. Usagi looked a bit guilty.

"Well, not exactly…"

"Good," Minako said with a devious grin. Usagi left and the duo walked off together, women on a mission.

.:.:.:.

A/N: ::wince:: that was a seriously pathetic chapter… I also need to apologize for the atrocious cliché of Mamoru cheating on Usagi. (GOMEN USA-NEECHAN!!! ::crycry::) Oh, BTW, I'm planning a sequel to this fic, only slightly AU (Sailor Senshi and Gundams!). It will be called "A Box of Chocolates". To make it up to Usa-neechan for doing an AU fic _and_ a cliché. ::sweatdrop::

Moon Mage Goddess: Well, it wasn't the idea exactly, as this is an AU fic… but… I rather like the Luna Ball Idea! (I'd put a smiley face here, but QuickEdit won't let me. ::sigh::)

Jewels14: I'm glad you're reading this even though it's Usagi-centered! Your favorite character is Minako, ne?

Firenze: A Harry Potter fan, ne? ;-D Don't worry, I will. :-)

AdorableAngel: I'm glad you think it's different. ::grins:: There are too many cliché fics online today…

Saris Yui: Cute is good! Thank you!

Lady in Red1: I'm wishing that too, but it'll be a bit hard to make it believable. Heheh…?

Aeden Hale: Yes, well, I'm no good at battle scenes… ::sweatdrop:: So I guess I'm just trying to make it easier on myself.

Kou Kepani: Wow, sucked in? I guess I'd better not leave you hanging, then!

Sunshine Fia: Hehe, I guess we'll just have to see what happens then, won't we? XD

Bunny-chan13: Thank you!

Usagi Asia Maxwell: Alternate universes rule! XP

Concrete Tenshi: At least it's not too cliché… ::sweatdrop:: Then I'd just have to punish myself…

Dreamfairy06: Don't worry, dear. Maybe it's just a typo?

Sere Star: uhm… okay? ::sheepish grin::

GravityGoddessBlade: Mou, no whining! ::scoldscold:: If I rush it, it'll be horrible! XD


	4. Chapter Four

**Chocolate Fixes Everything**

_Chapter Four_

**Disclaimer:** All right kids, if you answer this question correctly, you get a cookie! Does Riru-chan own Sailormoon or Gundam Wing?

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing), profanity

**Author's Note: **Again, apologies for the patheticism of the previous chapter and the atrocious cliché-y-ness of the fic as a whole. I have planned a pleasant surprise for this chapter… well, pleasant for the _readers_, anyway. :evil grin: As of right now, the entire story has been planned (there will be eighteen chapters), and I'm starting plans for the sequel.

* * *

Usagi took a deep breath and stared at the quaint little house that had been sold as soon as it was up on the market. The papers in her hand rustled, reminding her of why she was here. She surveyed the house, remembering happier times when she and Mamoru would sit out on the swing on the front porch and watch the stars.

Had he been cheating on her then, too? Usagi bit her lip. No, she was certain this was a recent development, and that Mamoru had been completely sincere back then. Still, that didn't change the fact that he was a treacherous bastard and that Usagi was eagerly anticipating the look on his face when she told him he would have to leave the house within the week.

She began her trek up the hedge-lined path to the front door, smirking. She reached her destination and let herself in.

Mamoru was sitting on the sofa, watching TV. He looked up tiredly when Usagi entered, blinking.

"Where have you been Usako?" he asked, giving her a lazy smile. Usagi smiled back sweetly.

"Selling the house. You have until the end of the week to move out," she replied. Mamoru chuckled.

"Hey, Usako, your sense of humor's changed a bit. It's more sarcastic now, I like it," he said. Usagi's smile turned slightly wicked as she pulled on the aura she usually reserved for business dealings and errant employees: intimidating, omniscient, and downright scary.

"I'm not joking around Mamoru," Usagi placed the divorce papers on the coffee table. "Have these filled out as soon as you can. I suggest you find an apartment soon— I already have. Then again, I guess you could just move in with your girlfriend… Jun, was it? Unless she's married as well, in which case I don't think it would be a wise idea." Usagi turned and walked to the door to leave, but stopped in the threshold. "Oh, and don't worry about closing the bank accounts, I've already taken care of that."

Mamoru stared after her as she shut the door, and continued staring at the door for a full five minutes, stupefied. Suddenly, he came to his senses and snatched the papers from the coffee table, swearing as he read them over.

* * *

Usagi looked around at the boxes piled high in her new apartment. It was spacious, just the right size for a busy bachelorette with a lot of friends. She breathed deeply, inhaling the lemony-fresh scent typical of a recently cleaned room.

"Perfect," Usagi murmured to herself, drawing a chuckle as Rei entered the room behind her.

"I have to agree, I don't think you could get a better apartment if you built it yourself…" Rei said, trailing off. She then reflected on her words and smirked. "Then again, if you built it yourself—"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence," Usagi grumbled, shooting Rei a dark look. Rei snickered and opened a furniture box.

"I can't believe you did that to Mamoru…" she said, rolling her eyes. "It was so immature. What's he gonna do with no money?"

"_I_ can't believe he cheated on me," Usagi snapped. "He can wander around the alleys looking like a hobo, for all I care." Minako and Ami arrived a moment later, Minako bearing two large pizzas and a six-pack of sodas

"How much do you think we're going to eat, Minako?" Rei said, gesturing to the pizza. "Do you want us all to get fat?" Minako and Rei began bickering, with Ami standing on the sidelines acting as referee. Usagi chuckled and continued to open the furniture box that Rei had started on.

_Just like old times,_ Usagi thought ironically. _All that's missing is Mako-chan._ Usagi paused for a moment, and then sighed. She missed Makoto terribly. When Usagi had been ten, her parents had taken Mako in though a foster program. Since then, Mako had stayed by Usagi's side through thick and thin, hell and high water. She was Usagi's role model: tough and rough-talking, yet mature and poised; a jujutsu master and a brilliant ice skater; a tomboy through and through, but the perfect future housewife.

She had crushed on Motoki with Usagi, and played games at the arcade. She had comforted the odango-haired teen when her cat, Luna, ran away. Then Makoto had started military school while Usagi and Ami met Minako at Juuban High. Usagi had rarely seen her from that point on; immediately after she graduated from military school, Mako had gone to Paris to start her restaurant. (How she had made such a drastic transition from military life to cooking, Usagi could never comprehend.)

"Usagi, where do you want the plates and silverware?" Ami asked, drawing Usagi from her reverie and reminding the odango-haired young woman that she had an entire apartment to set up by nightfall.

"Just dump 'em in the kitchen," Usagi said. "Let's get started on the living room first… no! Minako, that's not for standing on!"

* * *

Prussian blue eyes scanned the manuscript, a small spark the only sign of the reader's amusement. Hiiro's lips curved into a small smirk. This next product would put Wing Corporations on the map. Again.

He placed the document on his coffee table and sauntered into his kitchen, pulling a bottle of white wine from the small wine cellar under the countertop and selecting a wine glass from one of the glass-front cabinets.

He poured the Chardonnay into the glass and took a sip.

Ah, the taste of victory.

* * *

Usagi struggled with the cardboard box, regretting now that she had sent the girls home without waiting for the final piece of furniture to arrive.

She thanked whoever was listening for elevators; it would have been hell on earth to struggle up the (what seemed like) thousands of flights of stairs with a box bigger than she was.

She peered around the box toward the end of the hall, where here apartment was. At last, the home stretch! She could almost relax…

* * *

Hiiro almost spat out the wine he had just sipped as a loud crash sounded from his hallway.

He set the wine glass on the counter and dashed to the front door of his apartment, flinging it open to see a young woman sprawled over the floor, a large box that she had apparently been trying to carry.

"Do you need help?" Hiiro asked after a moment, watching the poor young woman struggle to regain her footing and lift the box at the same time.

"Help…" she began, taking a deep breath, "…would be nice." Hiiro mentally rolled his eyes and lifted the box without any trouble. The young woman caught her breath and attempted to compose herself. "Thanks. Sorry, I'm just moving in, and this is the last box…" Hiiro simply nodded and the young woman smiled. "Would it be too much trouble to ask you to bring it inside?" Hiiro shrugged.

The young woman laughed and made her way down the hall, opening the door to the apartment opposite Hiiro's. "Not much of a talker, are you?" Hiiro followed her in, his eyes sweeping the slightly disorganized penthouse. He set down the box.

"Thank you so much!" the woman explained, smiling again. Her smiles made Hiiro a little nervous— who smiled that much? "I'm Usagi, by the way," she continued, "Tsukino Usagi."

Hiiro wondered if the universe hated him.

* * *

The kind young man who had helped her said nothing. Usagi frowned. "Uh… well. What's your name?"

"Yui Hiiro." Usagi stared for a moment, gaping.

Well, crap.

* * *

A/N: Whew. MAJOR writer's block on this one, I tell you. I planned the chapter too short, and it bugged me. Hence, it took a while.

Reviewers, my loves:

**Moon Mage Goddess **(No, the major plot is definitely cliché, but I've got a twist or two coming in later chapters. :secretive smirk:)**; Usagi Asia Maxwell **(Heh, I never did like Mamoru. He won't been appearing again until maybe the next story. (Planning is still in the works!))**; Aeden Hale **(As you can see, I decided to focus less on revenge and more on Usagi's moving on with life. You can bet she's gonna forget Mamoru pretty quickly.)**; frosty; DuosBunnie; Kail Ceannai **(If anything differs to much from real life, I'll pull the author's privileges card. :sweatdrop:)**; dreamfairy06; Concrete Tenshi; xxSilverWingsxx; kagie-chan; Katlin Grace; Angelight** (Mou, I don't know much about business, nee? So all of your questions confused me. x-x In any case, just ignore my attempts to run this imaginary business thingie. Everything I say will be wrong. XD)**; CosmicBunny18; Ladee in Red; Silver Hawk Angel; Jewels15; i can't believe i'm alive; littleBUNNY92; Repori; GravityGoddessBlade** (Hehe, good control you exhibit. :D)**; Sylverkaze; GemJewel; Name1; Alixa Elizabeth Hufflepuff; BlacKat; Blackrosebunny; Anya No Gin Hoshi; samisweet; Serena SilverMoon; serenity77; Phoenix Bakura **(Ne, ne, you gotta share! XP)**; Raine of The Darkness Clan; Ivy Tearen; Tainted Spirit of Life; artemis** (I don't know whether to be mad at your insults or appreciative that you read my story and like it enough to insult my lack of updating. As I said before, this chapter was a pain to write. I didn't like where it was going, it was too short, etc. etc… In any case, it made me not want to try, because I wasn't enjoying it. I love my reviewers, and yes I read every one. They're at least 50 of what makes me love writing, but the other 50 is my own enjoyment in it. If I'm not having fun, I act like the self-centered human being that I am and don't do it. Contrary to popular belief, I do have a life and do have better things to be doing. There is no law that says I have to finish this story. So don't insult me. You don't know me, what I do on a daily basis, and you definitely don't know how I feel about my reviewers. There are no words. I apologize for my preaching, especially if you did not mean your comment to be taken offensively.)


	5. Chapter Five

Chocolate Fixes Everything

Chapter Five

**Disclaimer:** Riru-chan is a poor high-school junior who doesn't even have a car. Pity her.

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing), profanity

**Author's Note: **Ah, summer… how flighty thou art. Written to the soulful tunes of Hikaru Utada's _Distance_ CD. Don't you love it when friends bring you CDs from China?

* * *

"_What_?" Duo cried, the grin on his face reminiscent of a child's upon realizing Christmas had come early. "She moved in the _same building_ as you?" Duo pointedly ignored the twitch of Hiiro's fist as the CEO clenched it in anger. "I mean, as if it wasn't bad enough that you work in the building across from her, now you actually live in the same building! I mean, if that's not fate, I don't know what is!" 

Hiiro, though he allowed no emotion to trespass across his features, clenched his teeth and glared, before giving up as it had no effect whatsoever on the babbling braided-one. In truth, Hiiro was furious with Duo because he was right; it was just Hiiro's luck to end up in the same apartment building with his infantile, incompetent, annoying, volatile, high-and-mighty _brat_ of a business rival.

At least he had already one-upped her, he thought to himself as he stared at the neon "Luna, Inc." sign across the street. He allowed himself a small expression. Yes, Tsukino was probably squirming right about now. Uncharacteristically vindictive, Hiiro snickered mentally at the thought of the mental crisis the brat must be going through at that very moment.

It was at this time that Murphy's Law decided to kick in.

Quatre burst through the door, face red from running. Hiiro looked up, taking a sip of the now-cold coffee he had ordered before Duo had invaded his office.

"What's the problem?" Hiiro asked flatly. Quatre held up a newspaper, a horrified expression on his face.

"Luna Inc. put out a new product," the blond said fatalistically. Hiiro nearly spat out his coffee. Nearly. Swallowing, Hiiro snatched the paper from Quatre, eyes scanning past the folio that declared it the Business section and latching onto the headline.

_Luna Inc. Releases Hi-tech "Pocket-Knife" _

_Luna Inc., headed by Tsukino-Chiba Usagi, has just released the prototype of a revolutionary new product they call a Luna Ball. The Luna Ball could very well put Luna Inc. at the top of the business world._

_Child-friendly, the Luna Ball is comprised of several technological aspects rolled into a six-inch diameter orb shaped to look like CEO Tsukino-Chiba's childhood pet, a cat. The Luna Ball functions as a digital camera and video recorder, cell phone, computer, GPS and a child-proof laser beam for purposes unspecified._

_"We just thought it'd be a good thing to add," said Tsukino-Chiba at the press conference this morning. "You never know when you'll need a laser beam."_

_In addition to the easily-accessible technology the Luna Ball provides, the device is programmed to follow its owner around, a combination of its pet-like quality and hover-craft technology._

_All in all, this new technology puts quite the damper on Wing Corp.'s recent breakthrough in the communications business._

Deliberately, Hiiro crumpled up the paper and tossed it into the trash can across the room.

* * *

Usagi frowned at the article in the paper. She'd have to announce her divorce from Mamoru to the world pretty soon. After all, seeing his name attached to hers left a bitter aftertaste to an otherwise gloriously sweet victory. 

"Usagi-chan," Minako's voice chirped through the intercom. "You have a phone call!"

"Can it wait?" Usagi asked with a sigh. "I'm savoring my victory, here."

"It's Mako-chan," Minako said enticingly, as if Usagi were fifteen again and being bribed out of a mood with cake. Usagi brightened.

"Well, why didn't you say so?" Usagi snatched up the phone.

"Mako-chan? What's up?"

"It's good to hear your voice!" Makoto said. Usagi could hear the happiness in her voice.

"Things are going well, I take it?" Usagi asked with a smile. She and Mako had been almost like sisters when they were younger, and it had been quite a while since they had spoken.

"Very well," Makoto replied. "So well, in fact, that I'm opening up a second restaurant in Tokyo."

Usagi's mind blanked, and she stared at the phone in shocked silence.

"Usagi? Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah. It's just… _wow_." Mako chuckled.

"Yeah, I know. I can hardly believe it, myself!"

"When are you arriving?"

"Just before New Year's," Mako replied. Her tone became hesitant. "Do you think I could crash at yours and Mamoru-san's house? Just until I get set up, and all." Usagi's face fell, and though Mako couldn't see her, the sudden change in mood was palpable as far away as Paris.

"Actually, Mako, I divorced Mamoru. Just a couple days ago, actually," Usagi said quietly.

"Oh… oh my… Why? What happened?" Makoto asked frantically.

"He cheated on me. I don't really want to talk about it, Mako-chan. But you're coming back to Japan! That's brilliant! I'll pick you up at the airport. I moved into and apartment, but it's more than big enough for two."

* * *

Usagi grinned as she parked her car in the parking complex beside her apartment building. Not even living in the same vicinity as Yui Hiiro could dampen her day now! She literally skipped to the elevator and danced in place as it ascended. 

She had finally reached her apartment building and was fantasizing about a nice cup of hot cocoa when she pulled her keys out of her pocket.

She paused, staring at her key ring, dumbfounded, before riffling through her purse to try and find the key to the front door.

She then remembered that she and the girls had given the key a place of honor on the coffee table in the living room during their celebrations the previous night, and that she had forgotten to replace it on her key ring.

Crap indeed.

* * *

A/N:wince: This is also an extremely short chapter. BUT! You have to admit, the ending is devious. 

Riru loves:

**koldy; shayne malfoy; Raine of the Darkness Clan; Blackrosebunny; Hecate of Black Magic; Leakie-chan; Lady Light; TsukinoGoddess** (yes, Mako will be mentioned again… in fact… :trails off into author-y, smug silence:)**; ThoseRainyDays; xxSilverWingsxx; Phoenix Bakura **(XD Pervert.)**; moon-bunny735; serenity77; GoldenStar; frosty; Usagi Asia Maxwell **(haha, I'll drink to that!)**; ShadowGoddessInc; WindPixie; kiruchi** (:glare: Of course I 'member you, silly. Heh, I'm glad I helped, and I'm even more glad you visited the ever-humble SM/GW section. :D)**; hatami; Damia- Queen of the Gypsi's** (:blinks: You are brilliant, I love you.)**; Flame Ivy Moon; Heero's Bunny-Scribble** (:ponder: He's not too out of character, is he? Well, I guess I can pass it off as the AUness of the story… BTW… your name is the awesome. XD)**; duo s luvergurl; Tesmoname; MoonlightPrincess** (You're so cute!)**; Kail Ceannai** (Ack, I've been pretty this summer, myself. Learning Japanese, I was.)

So… whatcha say, guys, put me over the hundred review mark?


	6. Chapter Six

Chocolate Fixes Everything

Chapter Six

**Disclaimer:** No own, no money, no sue.

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing), profanity

**Author's Note: **::wince::

Written to Panic! at the Disco, because they are the bestest band evar.

* * *

Had Hiiro been slightly less disciplined, he would have been laughing hysterically at the young woman curled in a fetal position outside her front door. As if sensing his amusement, the young woman glared at him.

"Fuck off."

"Hn." Hiiro shrugged pulling out his key and turning to his door, fully intending on leaving the foul-mouthed young woman out in the un-heated hall.

"Wait…" Hiiro paused at the pathetic whine, inwardly scoffing at the typical female inconsistency Tsukino Usagi was displaying. There was silence in the hall for a moment, before Hiiro sighed, resigned.

"What is it?" he asked flatly, turning to inspect the woman who was now looking up at him from her seat on the floor. He could see conflicting emotions in her eyes, and wondered again at the volatility of women.

"I—" Usagi started, before cutting herself off, looking down at her shoes. "Never mind." Hiiro watched her for a moment, mentally berating himself for even thinking about doing what he was going to do next.

"Come in, then."

* * *

Yui Hiiro's apartment was not at all what Usagi had expected. Not that this was any true surprise; no one these days keeps a fully-outfitted torture chamber in their urban apartment.

Still, she was surprised at the orderliness of his living room— hers had pizza boxes scattered all over from the night before.

Usagi jumped as Hiiro brushed past her to the phone.

"The landlord is out of town until tomorrow," Hiiro said, voice emotionless. It gave Usagi the creeps. "You won't be able to get a spare key until then. Call and leave a message." He tossed the cordless to her, with a bit more force than necessary. Usagi almost dropped it. She narrowed her eyes and punched the buttons briskly, glaring at her archenemy with venom.

As she left a message, Hiiro was moving fluidly around the kitchen, pulling a leftover pizza box from the fridge and setting it on the counter. She arched an eyebrow; the typical college-student meal seemed somewhat incongruent with the subtle style of penthouse. The other eyebrow rose to join its companion when the young man pulled out a champagne glass and filled it halfway with some kind of champagne – Usagi was no connoisseur, but it certainly _looked_ expensive.

Usagi replaced the phone on its charger, still staring skeptically at Hiiro's combination of food and drink. Hiiro noticed her gaze, but didn't comment.

"Cold, delivered pizza and champagne?" she asked at last, after a few moments of a stare-down. Hiiro just looked at her. Usagi sighed. "Well, aren't you Mr. Talkative?"

"Help yourself to some pizza. I'm going to eat and then sleep. You can use the couch. There are blankets in the linen closet over there," Hiiro said, turning and heading to what appeared to be the bedroom door.

"What, no champagne?" Usagi asked petulantly.

"Freeloaders don't get champagne. You're pushing it with the pizza." The bedroom door closed, leaving Usagi alone in the unfamiliar apartment. The young woman huffed.

Finally deciding that she was too hungry to be stubborn and refuse the offer of food, she grabbed a slice of pizza from the box and sat down on the couch, thinking uncharitable things about her host.

_What kind of guy makes a girl take the couch?!_ Usagi mused in outrage, glaring at the glass coffee table in front of her. _Mamoru would have let me have the bed, no questions asked!_

Finishing of the slice of pizza, she stomped over to the linen closet and pulled out a blanket, feeling momentary pity for the people downstairs whose ceiling she was shaking. She was about to turn back to the couch when her eye was caught by a door, slightly ajar.

Curious as a kitten, Usagi paused to ponder the door. It beckoned her. She obeyed.

She pushed the door open further, emerging into what appeared to be an office. Usagi blinked. _I'm in Yui Hiiro's private office…_ Usagi's businesswoman persona (which, as the reader will recall, is completely different from her usual one) took over. She was in her archrival's home office. There had to be something here she could use to her advantage.

It didn't take long for her to find what she was looking for: the plans for Wing Corp.'s newest product, sitting in an inconspicuous manila folder on the top of the orderly desk. Usagi's eyes widened as she perused the plans. Yui Hiiro had hit gold with this one. She'd have to do something about that.

She couldn't very well remove the plans from the office and release the same product before Yui did. The ethical injustice of such an action made her shudder.

She could, however find a way to improve the product before Yui did, and sell him the improvements for a nice bundle of money.

Usagi's lips twisted into a mischievous grin as her eyes fell on the fax machine.

* * *

The landlord called at ten in the morning, and by ten-thirty Usagi was back in her own apartment, grinning happily at the fax she had sent herself the night before. She picked up her phone, fax in hand, and dialed the familiar numbers of her best friend's house.

"Whoever this is, I hope you realize it is ten-thirty on a Saturday, and you had better have a good reason for waking me up," Rei's voice snapped blearily after the third ring.

"Morning, Rei!" Usagi said cheerfully.

"What in— Usagi? Why are you calling me? It's a weekend, no work!" Rei seemed to be a bit more awake, but no less annoyed.

"Guess what I am holding in my hands right now," Usagi ordered. A rushing sound told her that Rei had sighed in exasperation.

"If it's not a bonus, I don't want to know."

"I am holding the plans for Wing Corp.'s next big product."

"Because I deserve a bonus, you know, Usag— what did you say?" Usagi smiled smugly, even though she knew Rei couldn't see her over the phone.

"The. Plans. For. Wing. Corp.'s. Next. Big. Product," Usagi said, pronouncing each word with a self-satisfied relish.

Stunned silence.

"I figured, we can't copy it, because that's cheating, but we can make upgrades for it and sell them to Wing Corp. It's gonna be a vid-phone… looks pretty interesting, but they only have an at-home model. I figure, with the popularity of cell phones these days, we could try and make a portable version."

"Usagi, sometimes, your audacity amazes me. I'm not even sure this is legal…"

"They don't have a patent yet, Rei-chan. It's fine." Rei sighed.

"All right. We'll get to work on that on Monday. Can I go back to sleep now?"

"You sound like me when we were in high school."

"Usagi!"

* * *

A/N: I'm so sorry to keep you all waiting. I am a horrible person and deserve to be shot. Okay, maybe that's an exaggeration, but I'm still bad. My excuse is that I have been living in Japan for the past five months. (Although that still leaves a year unaccounted for, I would like to point out that it was my junior year, and therefore the most important in my high school career.) I hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me. T.T Uh… yeah, about the product thing? I'm not sure whether it's legal or not myself. So as this is fiction, I will manipulate reality and say it is. Hell if I know the way business works.

Thanks to all my reviewers! I'll have another chapter up very soon, I promise! And we'll get to see some new cameo characters and a Christmas party… so keep reading!


	7. Chapter Seven

Chocolate Fixes Everything

Chapter Seven

**Disclaimer:** No own, no money, no sue.

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing), profanity

**Author's Note: **Told you… soon!

* * *

All was going well for Tsukino Usagi. She had divorced her cheating husband, one-upped Wing Corp., and had already stocked her apartment with chocolate in so many stashes that Rei would never be able to find and eradicate them all.

That, and Christmas was only a week away. Usagi walked out onto her balcony, breathing in the cool winter air and smiling at the string of lights she had wrapped around the railing. Tokyo was alight with color, activity and cheer, leaving only a little room for disappointment that it hadn't started to snow yet this year. A white Christmas seemed to be a distant dream, what with the sun shining in a blue sky, dazzling its poor unsuspecting victims whenever it reflected off of a random car roof.

It was Sunday, and Usagi intended to spend it as tradition dictated: as a day of rest. For Usagi, this meant vegging out in front of the TV with a couple of chocolate bars and ordering takeout when she got really hungry.

Those plans were ruined, however, when the penthouse intercom rang out. Usagi sighed and returned inside, diving for the response button.

"Yes?" she asked, somewhat miffed that her veg-out session had been interrupted before it even began.

"Ms. Tsukino, an urgent letter for you has just been delivered. Should I bring it up?" Usagi recognized the voice of one of the doormen, a young college student nicknamed Frank. She sighed.

"Yeah, thanks, Frank. That'd be great." Usagi broke off the communication and waited for Frank to arrive, pondering why on earth she would receive and urgent letter on a _Sunday_, of all days, when the post offices didn't open.

She still hadn't come to an answer when Frank knocked on her door, handing her the cream-colored envelope. She thanked him with a smile and closed the door, staring at the envelope as she turned to the living room.

Her name and address were penned in elegant gold ink on the front of the envelope, and she noted that it had no stamp, indicating a hand-delivery.

Deciding not to postpone the solution to her curiosity any longer, Usagi slid a finger under the flap and opened it, pulling out the contents as she sat down on the sofa.

She read the note once, blinked, and read it again.

_Miss Tsukino Usagi,_

_As the CEO of one of Tokyo's leading businesses, you are cordially invited to Takatori Reiji's Christmas Gala, to be held Sunday, 25th of December at the Palace Hotel in Tokyo. The gala will commence at eight o'clock in the evening and continue until midnight. The dress code is formal attire only. Please present this invitation to the concierge at the hotel upon your arrival._

Usagi smiled brilliantly; she'd never been to a gala before. And Takatori… hadn't she heard that name before?

Ah, yes, the favored candidate for the office of Prime Minister or some such importance. Usagi didn't pay much attention to politics.

In any case, a gala was bound to be interesting.

Content and about to indulge herself with chocolate and soaps, Usagi blinked.

She didn't have a thing to wear.

Groaning, she dragged herself up from the couch, heading to her handbag and keys. She loved shopping as much as the next girl, but trying to find an elegant, fashionable gown that looked good on her in the middle of Tokyo's pre-Christmas rush was going to be a trying task.

* * *

The Palace Hotel was, as the name implied, a palatial building in Tokyo's upscale shopping district. Usagi, handing the keys of her beloved Jeep to the valet (and ignoring the looks of disbelief she received for arriving to a gala in anything but a luxury vehicle driven by a chauffeur), gazed at the building in awe. She'd always had a thing for beautiful buildings. Sure, her house with Mamoru was picturesque, in a fairy-tale cottage way, but it had nothing on the elegant architectural features of the Palace Hotel.

She ascended the steps to the lobby, lifting the skirt of her dress slightly to keep it from dragging. The dress had been, in spite of having a week to find it, a last minute thing. She had been searching desparately the entire week for the perfect dress, and it was only on Christmas Eve that she had found one that felt "right." It was iridescent white, an empire waist lined with silver beads. The top of the dress with adorned with intricate silver lace, and puffy sleeves concealed her shoulders. Her hair was done up in her trademark buns-and-streamers style, made more formal with the addition of pearl barrettes.

Minako said the ensemble was adorable. Rei called it fitting for one as immature as Usagi.

Usagi handed the invitation to the concierge inside the lobby, trying hard not to stick her tongue out at an imaginary Rei-chan. For one thing, the concierge would probably be taken aback. For another, it would prove Rei right.

She was lead to a large ballroom, swarming with elegantly dressed people and sycophantic waiters carrying trays of champagne and gourmet finger foods.

Usagi took a cucumber sandwich from a passing waiter and surveyed the crowd. Most of them were middle-aged men and their wives, she noted with disappointment.

"Champagne, miss?" Usagi looked up to see a young waiter with a smile on his face. Usagi smiled back brilliantly.

"Thank you. There's not much else to do around here other than eat and drink anyway," she said, send a wry glance at the other guests. The young waiter frowned thoughtfully.

"There does seem to be a bit of an age gap, doesn't there?" He paused, and then pointed in a vague direction. "I thought I saw a man about your age over there. He looked as bored as you do." The waiter shrugged, grinning sheepishly. "It might be worth checking out." Usagi took a sip of champagne.

"I think I'll do that. Thanks…?"

"Tsukiyono Omi." Usagi stared at him for a moment, amazed at how similar his last name was to hers.

"Tsukiyono-kun. I'm Tsukino Usagi." Omi blinked back, startled, before smiling.

"Well, Tsukino-san, I hope you enjoy the rest of the gala." He gave a small bow and disappeared into the crowd. Usagi finished off her champagne and walked in the direction Omi had indicated, placing her empty glass on the tray of yet another passing waiter as she went.

The crowd thinned as she approached the wall, and Usagi had to wonder if Omi had been imagining things. There wasn't another young person in sight. At last she reached the wall, and realized that perhaps Omi wasn't imaging things after all. Sitting in one of the armchairs arranged against the wall was the last person she had expected to see at this – or any – gala.

"Yui?!" Hiiro looked up from his glass of champagne.

"Tsukino. I'm surprised you warranted an invitation." Usagi glared at her rival.

"_I'm_ surprised that _you_ deigned to attended a _gala_." Hiiro stood, placing his champagne glass on a passing tray.

"You seem to forget that I am friends with Quatre Winner. Social events like these are commonplace for me. How many have you attended, Tsukino?" Usagi grasped the material of her dress, trying not to dive for the nearest makeshift weapon and bash Hiiro's head in. Hiiro looked her up and down. "Apparently not many. You'll ruin your dress if you keep that up." Hiiro started walking away.

"I hate you, Yui Hiiro!" Usagi said, whirling around and storming off in a different direction.

* * *

Naoe Nagi was often bored. His employer's gala was no exception. The brown-haired young man straightened his tuxedo and continued his reconnaisance. Takatori held this gala annually, as a way of keeping tabs on the most influential businesses in Tokyo; and of course, it fell to his pet assassin team, Schwartz, to update those tabs. Thus, Nagi, the youngest member of the team, was forced to exchange pleasantries with these disgusting excuses for human beings.

The telekinetic let out a small sigh and placed an invisible obstacle in the way of an unsuspecting waiter, causing the man to trip and drop his tray into the lap of some CEO's wife.

Nagi didn't believe in karma. However, the universe has a way of playing tricks on such people.

The next moment, Nagi was crashed into by a young woman in a white dress with the longest blonde hair Nagi had ever seen. They both fell to the floor. The woman stood up immediately and held out her hand to help Nagi up.

"I'm so sorry!" Nagi refuse the help and stood up on his own, inspecting the woman with detached disinterest.

"It's no problem," Nagi said. "Are you hurt, Miss…?"

"Ah – Tsukino Usagi. I'm fine. Are you all right?"

"Yes. I'm Naoe Nagi, by the way." Nagi held out his hand, and Usagi took it hesitatingly. He supressed a flicker of amusement at the startled expression on the woman's – a girl, really – face as his pressed his lips to the back of her hand. Clearly, she was new to the intricacies of upper class behavior.

"N- nice to meet you."

"You as well. Are you enjoying the gala?" Usagi gave an ironic smile.

"As well as can be expected, considering I just had a run-in with Yui Hiiro before literally running into another guest." Nagi thought for a moment.

"Yui… that would be Wing Corp.'s CEO, correct? And you're Luna Inc.'s. I can see how that might have been a problem." Usagi blinked in innocent surprise.

"You know me?" Nagi allowed a small smile to cross his face.

"With the headlines in the newspaper, it's hard not to. Would you care to dance? We might be able to do something about this disappointing evening of yours." Usagi nodded, an enchanted smile on her face.

* * *

Tsukiyono Omi glimpsed the twirling form of Tsukino Usagi on the parquet dance floor out of the corner of his eye. He smiled, glad that the young woman's boredom had been alleviated, and turned to observe her fully.

His good mood shattered as he saw her dance partner.

Glancing around, he spotted a fellow waiter and handed the poor man his tray.

"I'm really sorry, I have some urgent business to attend to," Omi told the man, who was glaring at him in outrage.

Omi weaved through the crowd and left the ballroom, searching for a secluded place. At last, he found one, and pulled a cell phone out of his pocket, quickly dialing the number of a certain flower shop.

"Koneko no Sumi Ie, Kudou Yohji speaking."

"Yohji, it's Omi. I think we have a problem."

* * *

A/N: I love Christmas… Anyways, now we have Weiss Kreuz entering the fray!

For those of you unfamiliar with Weiss Kreuz, here is the basic idea: four guys (Aya, Youji, Ken , and Omi) work in a flower shop by day, and are assassins by night. Their boss is Persia, their group is called Weiss, and their missions usually have something to do with fixing the wrongs created by the corrupt politician Takatori Reiji. Takatori has his own "clean-up crew", in the form of Weiss' archrivals, Schwarz (Crawford, Schuldich, Farfarello, and Nagi). And that is pretty much all I can tell you without giving away spoilers for this fic and the series. I've altered the ages of Nagi and Omi in this story. They are both about 23, which means that the others' ages range from 24-26, or something. I forget the ages, really… x.x shame on me.

I was a bit disappointed with the lack of response to last chapter. I know, it's awful of me, having said repeatedly that I don't care about reviews. But actually, I do care. So... review, please?


	8. Chapter Eight

Chocolate Fixes Everything

Chapter Eight

**Disclaimer:** No own, no money, no sue.

**Warnings:** AU, OOC, Usagi-centric, semi-Rei-centric, love polygons, anti-Mamoru (very little bashing), profanity

**Author's Note: **This is officially my longest fanfiction. :D Yay me! This is also where things get interesting. Um. I think.

* * *

Four young assassins sat in the living room of their shared apartment, watching the voluptuous redhead as she turned on the video communication. A shadowy form appeared on the television screen. 

"Good evening, Weiss."

"We're not Charlie's Angels, Persia," Kudou Yohji grumbled, running a hand through his honey-blonde hair as he chewed on the end of his cigarette. The shadowy form chuckled.

"Quite. And I'm not Charlie. Very well, then. From Bombay's report, as well as some outside information, we have determined that Tsukino Usagi is in very grave danger." Omi, codenamed Bombay, narrowed his eyes. Hideka Ken sighed.

"What makes this one so special? We've had people in grave danger before, and done nothing about it."

"For one thing, she's economically powerful. She didn't get invited to that gala on a whim. For another, her situation is such that she is more easily susceptible to join Takatori," Persia said. "This being the case, I have a mission for you. Infiltrate Luna Inc. and keep an eye on Miss Tsukino. Keep her as far away from Schwartz as you can. Bombay, this falls to you especially. She knows you already, and is more likely to trust you."

"Mission accepted."

"Hunters of the night, deny these dark beasts their tomorrow." Following the typical last remark, the video communication shut off. The redhead handed out envelopes to the four.

"These envelopes contain your assignments at Luna Inc. Try not to get fired," she said.

"Eh? Janitor?" Yohji moaned. "Manx, you _can't_ be serious!" The redhead sniffed.

"You aren't qualified for any other job openings."

"Aren't qualified, my ass…"

"Kudou. Shut up," Fujimiya Aya ordered, glaring at the blonde.

"I'm a receptionist," Ken said with a grimace. "Damn… Omi, you?"

"Computer technician." Ken chuckled.

"As expected of the techno geek. Aya?"

"Security guard." Manx rolled her eyes as Yohji started trying to trade jobs with Aya.

"Anyway, Weiss, good luck," she said, picking up her purse and heading for the door. The young men didn't seem to hear her, as Ken joined the squabble between Yohji and Aya.

* * *

Usagi was late. Again. Flashing her I.D. card at the security guard (who she noted was a) new and b) drop-dead gorgeous), she scanned the lobby to make sure Rei hadn't noticed her tardiness. There was no sign of the dark-haired woman anywhere. 

This was decidedly odd. Rei never missed a chance to dress Usagi down in public. Frowning, she walked up to the reception desk.

"Hino Rei hasn't been by here yet, has she?" she asked the young man (also new and drop-dead gorgeous) at the desk.

"Hino-san? The publicity manager, correct? She clocked in about ten minutes ago."

"Eh? Rei-chan was _late_?!"

"Actually, Usagi…" Usagi turned to face a smirking Rei. "I turned your clocks forward while you were out last night." Usagi gaped, not noticing the new receptionist snickering softly.

"Wha – How did you get into my apartment?!"

"You gave me a spare key after the Yui-incident, remember?"

"Rei-chaaaaaaan!" Usagi groaned in distress.

"Revenge for making me start work two days after Christmas!" Rei said triumphantly. "Let's go, odango atama, we've got work to do." With that, Rei strode over to the elevator, Usagi trailing behind, grumbling.

After escaping Rei and passing a new janitor (who happened to be drop-dead gorgeous, if a little irritable) in the hallway, Usagi made it to her office and collapsed into her chair.

"Stupid Rei-chan. Stupid clocks. Stupid…" Usagi booted up her computer, muttering to herself. The computer screen turned blue, giving a prompt in an impossible-to-understand technical language. "…Stupid computer!" She reached for the phone on her desk, dialing the number for the computer department.

"Hello – ?"

"This is Tsukino Usagi. My computer is acting up. Someone come and fix it." She slammed the phone back down on the receiver and let her head fall onto the desk. Ten minutes later there was a hesitant knock on the door.

"If that's not the computer guy, you're fired," she called, not bothering to lift her head. The door opened.

"Ms. Tsukino? Uh… I'm here to fix the computer…" Usagi looked up. Standing in the doorway was a new, drop-dead gorgeous computer technician. Usagi blinked.

"Tsukiyono-kun? I thought you were a waiter!"

* * *

The atmosphere in the anteroom was slightly tense, but that didn't stop Nagi from being bored. He half-heartedly redirected a knife thrown at his head by Farfarello, and stretched his mind to find something interesting to think about. 

He and the rest of Schwartz were gathered here at Takatori's campaign headquarters, awaiting the details of their next target. Apparently Takatori was making an important call, the outcome of which would determine who the assassin team was to kill next.

Had Nagi been a bit less jaded, he might have been less bored – perhaps even nervous. He sighed inwardly. He had been trained too well for anything to interest him anymore.

He let his mind wander to his last mission: surveillance at the Christmas Gala. Now, that was an anomaly. He had almost actually… enjoyed himself. Normally, given that type of mission, he remained distant and avoided his targets; this ensured that he would form no attachments to people he might need to kill later.

With Tsukino Usagi, however, he behaved differently. Perhaps this was an error on his part.

Nagi's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the door clicking open. He stood with the rest of his teammates as Takatori Reiji entered the anteroom.

"Schwartz. I have just had a disappointing conversation with someone I asked to lend me their support. Unfortunately, they need to be disposed of."

"Understood." Bradley Crawford, the team leader, adjusted his glasses, causing the light to glint off of them ominously. "Their address?"

* * *

Tsukino Ikuko hummed softly as she stirred the pot of soup on the stove. It was six o'clock in the evening on December 27th. A sad smile crossed her face – aside from her humming and the drone of the TV in the living room, where Kenji was relaxing, all was quiet. 

There had been a time when two teenage girls would have been making a ruckus in that very living room, trying to outclass each other in a racing game, or some such entertainment. Those two teenage girls were now adults, each leading their own, successful lives, and leaving Ikuko and Kenji with a much less interesting lifestyle.

Usagi, although close by, rarely came to visit. Ikuko was proud of her youngest child, however; she never would have thought that the under-achieving girl would end up the CEO of her own company.

Makoto, on the other hand – that was expected. Ikuko and Kenji had taken Makoto in as a foster child when the girls were both ten. Although slightly rambunctious, Mako had always loved to help Ikuko in the kitchen.

Ikuko's smiled brightened. She had convinced Usagi come home for dinner on New Year's Eve; with Makoto coming back to Japan soon, it was likely that both girls would be counting down the seconds until the new year with them.

She took the soup off of the stove and switched the heat off, before dishing out the food.

"Kenji, dinner!"

The middle-aged couple sat down at the table. Kenji frowned suddenly, spoon poised in the air as he looked to the kitchen.

"Ikuko, did you leave the stove on? I smell gas." Ikuko tilted her head to the side, contemplating.

"…No, I'm pretty certain I turned it off. I'll go make sure."

* * *

Nagi stared at the blazing house, the flames reflecting in his eyes. Tearing his attention away from the fire, he glanced at Crawford. The precog was looking at his watch. 

"It's still early in the evening. The police will be here soon," Crawford said. His eyes glazed, an indication that a vision was playing before his eyes. "Yes. We should leave now."

* * *

Usagi's phone rang. She blinked, looking at the clock. It was nine – a little late for a social call. She muted the TV and reached for the phone. 

"Hello?"

"Is this Tsukino Usagi?"

"Yes, may I ask who is calling?"

"Ms. Tsukino, this is Officer Yoshida, Juuban District Police. Please sit down. I'm afraid I have some bad news for you."

* * *

Osaka Naru stared sadly at her favorite client. Ever since Naru had started babysitting for the girl when Usagi was eight, she had never seen anything but a smile on her face. 

Now, thirteen years later, it was nothing but tears and trauma for the little neighborhood girl that Naru had seen as a kid sister. Naru put a hand on Usagi's shoulder, heart wrenching at the way it shook under the weight of Usagi's sobs.

"Usagi, I know it's soon. Maybe too soon. But your mother requested in her will that you be given this immediately upon her… death." Naru's voice caught on the last word. If Usagi had been her surrogate sister, Ikuko was a second mother. The news of her death had hit Naru hard as well.

Usagi looked up, sniffing and brushing away her tears in an attempt to compose herself. Naru gave her what was hopefully an encouraging smile (with perhaps a slight quiver), and walked over the box she had pulled out of the safe before Usagi arrived.

Usagi took the box with shaking hands and opened the lid. Inside was, of all things, a book. Usagi took it out, a slightly hysterical chuckle escaping her lips.

"Of course, she leaves me a book. She _would_ do that." Naru smiled, but it didn't last long.

"I'm so sorry, Usagi." Usagi wrapped her arms around the older girl, book still in hand.

"I'm sorry too." Naru returned the hug.

* * *

It was December 28th. Usagi sat in her apartment, staring at the book she had received. It was obviously expensive – leather-bound, with a floral pattern in silver set into the lower right-hand corner. It had no title, and was at least three inches thick, which spelled something ominous in Usagi's mind. 

She was almost afraid to open it, but open it she did, and she was relieved when it didn't blow up in her face.

On the very first page were two lines of text that allayed all thoughts of shutting the book away in a dark place and forgetting about it forever:

_This diary belongs to_

Tsukino Ikuko 

_Mom's diary?_ The words echoed in Usagi's thoughts. _Why would mom give me her diary?_

Usagi sifted through the first few pages, marvelling at how familiar the hand-written script was. Her hand caressed the smooth vellum pages as tears welled up in her eyes. She almost jumped when her hand passed over something that was not a page. She looked down, spying a scarlet ribbon that nestled in between the pages close to the beginning of the diary.

She opened to the bookmark and began reading.

_June 18, 1983_

_He's the most adorable little thing you ever saw! Kenji and I couldn't be happier. Oniichan was here for his birth, and because Kenji and I couldn't agree on a name, Oniichan chose one._

_Tsukino Shingo, born June 17, 1983._

_Oniisama didn't show up, however. I think he and Oniichan had another fight. Kenji said it was no great loss, and I think I agree with him._

Usagi stared at the entry, mind frozen. The implication of her mother's words were… Usagi had believed that first, her parents were both only children, and second, that she herself was an only child until Makoto joined their family.

This diary completely turned that upside-down. Who was Tsukino Shingo? If he was indeed her older brother (as the date of this entry was two years before her birth), why hadn't she heard of him until now?

Now more confused than ever, Usagi returned to the diary for answers. What followed were two years of commentary in her mother's tiny hand writing. Shingo grew. He was stubborn, hated bananas, and had a habit of tugging on his left ear when he got tired. Ikuko got pregnant again. The so-called Oniichan (apparently the middle child in Ikuko's family) came to visit several times. Shingo loved him. Oniisama was mentioned with dislike and perhaps a tinge of fear, when he was mentioned at all.

And then, about a month before Usagi's birthday in 1985, the entries stopped.

* * *

A/N: Yeah. Cliffhanger-y. See you next time. ::runs away from livid readers:: 


End file.
